Please give me details on Zakat-ul-Fitr,
is it possible to give money instead of
food items? And what about Zakat-ul-
Fitr for couples living apart?

Fatwa:
All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord
of the Worlds. I testify that there is
none worthy of worship except Allah,
and that Muhammad is His slave
and Messenger.

Giving Zakat-ul-Fitr is an obligation on
every Muslim who possesses enough
food exceeding his or his family's basic
needs for the duration of the day or
night of 'Eed. Any Muslim who meets
this condition has to pay Zakat-ul-Fitr
on behalf of everyone he is obliged to
spend on, such as his wife, children and
parents. It is confirmed that Ibn 'Umar
said: "The Prophet enjoined
the payment of one Saa' (2,480 grams)
of dates or one Saa' of barley as Zakat-
ul-Fitr on every Muslim, free or slave,
male or female young or old. He also
ordered that it should be paid before
people go to 'Eed prayer." [Al-Bukhari]
Zakat-ul-Fitr should be paid out of the
common food in the country and it
should be given to the needy and the
poor. It is better if it is given out on
'Eed day but if it is given on the first
day of Ramadan then that is also
sufficient.
As regards giving the value of the Zakat-
ul-Fitr instead of food, Imam Malik,
Ash-Shafi'ee and Ahmad are of
the view that it should be given as food,
not as money. However, Imam Abu
Haneefah is of the view that if its
value (money) is given instead of food
then that is sufficient. Our view in
Islamweb is in favour of the first
opinion.
As for Zakat-ul-Fitr for couples living
apart, the wife is among the persons
whom the husband has to provide for,
so he has to pay Zakat-ul-Fitr on her.

This is the opinion of Imams Shafi'ee,
Ahmad and Malik . However, it
should be noted that the husband is not
obliged to pay Zakat-ul-Fitr for his wife
unless he is obliged to provide for her
and sustain her. Spending on the wife is
obligatory if the marriage is
consummated. Just signing the contract
without consummating the marriage
does not obligate the husband to
provide for her or pay Zakat-ul-Fitr on
her. Therefore, if the husband has
consummated the marriage, or
consummation of marriage was
arranged and made easy for him but he
failed to consummate it, then he is
obliged to provide for her and pay
Zakat-ul-Fitr on her.
However, if he has not consummated
the marriage or it was not made easy
for him, or she refused, then he is not
obliged to provide for her, or pay
Zakat-ul-Fitr on her. In any case, if he
pays Zakat-ul-Fitr on her with her
permission, then that suffices her, even
if he is not obliged to pay for her.
Anyway, Zakat-ul-Fitr is not a great
expenditure; it is only 2.5 kilograms of
rice, wheat or the like.
Finally, if you want more details about
Zakat-ul-Fitr then you can refer to the
books of Fiqh.
Allah Knows best.